Yeah, that definitely has a lot to do with her decision. And he had another Greek girl, Antonia Kolovou at SFA. I'm not sure why he left SFA when he built up a great team only to leave before they were able to be successful. But perhaps he can do the same at Houston?

I know Houston is his hometown and has family there, so that has alot to do with it. I don't know what caused Severance to resign, which opened up the doors for Sullivan. Sullivan was hired within 7 days of Severance resigning, so I have to imagine that Houston had already been knocking on Sullivan's door or visa versa.

It sounds like Houston really wants to build a program and Sullivan thinks he can get alot of support from the alumni and the community here. We'll see...

HOUSTON - First-year head coach Patrick Sullivan has wasted little time in getting the University of Houston women's tennis program headed in the right direction, as TennisRecruiting.net tabbed his first recruiting haul for 2013 as the No. 6 class in the nation on Monday.
"I may be a little biased about my hometown, but Houston is a great place and that makes recruiting easy," Sullivan said. "I think what separates us from most universities is that being situated in the heart of the fourth largest city in the country and on one of the most diverse campuses and regions in the world, student-athletes have limitless opportunities on the court, in the classroom and in the community. There aren't too many Tier One research institutions in thriving cities that offer top-notch academics, great weather, an hour's drive from the beach and a chance to play in a premier tennis conference. Our 2014 schedule will be one of the toughest in the country and it's exciting to have a team that will be up to the task. Our recent move back into the national rankings and the addition of these talented newcomers to our current strong and high-character core mean exciting things to come for Houston Tennis."
The 2013 signing class, consisting of international standouts Despoina Vogasari (Athens, Grecce) and Rocio Martin Fernandez (Madrid, Spain), is the top recruiting class in Conference USA history and the second-highest ranked class in mid-major history behind William and Mary in 2006. Houston's recruiting class received a first-place vote from a panelist for the nation's top class.
Vogasari, who signed a National Letter of Intent in November for the 2013-14 season, holds the highest ranking of any junior player in Greece and the Athens native is the highest ranked player to sign with the Houston women's tennis program in the last 20 years. Vogasari recently claimed her first professional tournament victory at the The Mytilini Open in Greece and has been a finalist in five other professional singles and doubles events over the last two years.

Martin Fernandez signed with Houston before the start of the spring semester, where she was ranked No. 44 in Spain's open division and No. 1204 in WTA's worldwide rankings. Originally from Galicia, Spain, Martin Fernandez claimed the U16 regional championship before moving to Madrid in high school, where she went on to win the U18 regional doubles championship and advance to the semifinals of a U18 Spanish national singles and doubles event.
"We were very high on our incoming class even before these rankings, but it is certainly a nice accolade to receive and the credit should go to assistant coach Jo Keene and our director of compliance Kevin Klotz, who do all of the important behind the scenes work and receive very little public praise for it," Sullivan said. "I hate to give away our secret weapon, but I also need to mention our academic advisor Helen Gore-Laird, who is a real wolf in sheep's clothing as the most dynamic on-campus recruiter in the country. When prospects come in on visits and see not only all that Houston has to offer, but more importantly the incredible support and family environment that (Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics) Mack Rhoades has cultivated within our department, it really separates us from the pack.
"Unfortunately they don't give out rings for recruiting championships and we still have a lot of work ahead of us before we can start winning championships on the tennis court," Sullivan continued, "but we are excited to be on the right track, with the right people."

found this article http://guidetogainesvilletennis.word...-future-gator/
on Allie kiick, she just beat Lara ARRUABARRENA of Spain who recently made the Round of 16 in Indian Wells, quarters in Bogota and won the Cali Challenger tournament! She is up on Vania King 5-2 right now on the second round of qualifying at Miami.

Tennis fans that were fortunate enough last week to soak in the Gainesville Women’s Tennis Classic may have also got a glimpse of a future Florida Gator.

Allie Kiick, a 17-year-old senior out of Fort Lauderdale, won the tournament in straight sets. That means she’s 5-0 this year in $10,000 prize tournaments.

Although she hasn’t officially signed, she does plan to play for the Gators starting in the 2013-2014 season.

found this article http://guidetogainesvilletennis.word...-future-gator/
on Allie kiick, she just beat Lara ARRUABARRENA of Spain who recently made the Round of 16 in Indian Wells, quarters in Bogota and won the Cali Challenger tournament! She is up on Vania King 5-2 right now on the second round of qualifying at Miami.

Tennis fans that were fortunate enough last week to soak in the Gainesville Women’s Tennis Classic may have also got a glimpse of a future Florida Gator.

Allie Kiick, a 17-year-old senior out of Fort Lauderdale, won the tournament in straight sets. That means she’s 5-0 this year in $10,000 prize tournaments.

Although she hasn’t officially signed, she does plan to play for the Gators starting in the 2013-2014 season.

From what I've heard if Allie does well this spring and summer (and I'm sure she has her own definition of what "well" means) then she'll go pro. But if her results aren't great then she'll head to UF in the fall. Qualifying for Miami is a pretty good start!

Alexandra Kiick just made it official, heading to Florida. Its posted on Tennis Recruiting! What a great catch by the Gators, she must of made the decision after getting the double bagel by Madison Keys.

Also read about Rebecca Marino retiring because of social media bullying she should of headed to Georgia Tech

No professional players retire due to social media 'bullying'. The reason was depression.

She retired because she lost the motivation and to want and travel around the tour. The depression, which got worse because of the cyber bullying, helped solidify her decision. I think she would've been happy at GT, but at the time, made the right move.

Alexandra Kiick just made it official, heading to Florida. Its posted on Tennis Recruiting! What a great catch by the Gators, she must of made the decision after getting the double bagel by Madison Keys.

Also read about Rebecca Marino retiring because of social media bullying she should of headed to Georgia Tech

WOW what a marvelou news! go gators!
this'll make up for the shortcomings that has been of collins...

HOUSTON - First-year head coach Patrick Sullivan has wasted little time in getting the University of Houston women's tennis program headed in the right direction, as TennisRecruiting.net tabbed his first recruiting haul for 2013 as the No. 6 class in the nation on Monday.
"I may be a little biased about my hometown, but Houston is a great place and that makes recruiting easy," Sullivan said. "I think what separates us from most universities is that being situated in the heart of the fourth largest city in the country and on one of the most diverse campuses and regions in the world, student-athletes have limitless opportunities on the court, in the classroom and in the community. There aren't too many Tier One research institutions in thriving cities that offer top-notch academics, great weather, an hour's drive from the beach and a chance to play in a premier tennis conference. Our 2014 schedule will be one of the toughest in the country and it's exciting to have a team that will be up to the task. Our recent move back into the national rankings and the addition of these talented newcomers to our current strong and high-character core mean exciting things to come for Houston Tennis."
The 2013 signing class, consisting of international standouts Despoina Vogasari (Athens, Grecce) and Rocio Martin Fernandez (Madrid, Spain), is the top recruiting class in Conference USA history and the second-highest ranked class in mid-major history behind William and Mary in 2006. Houston's recruiting class received a first-place vote from a panelist for the nation's top class.
Vogasari, who signed a National Letter of Intent in November for the 2013-14 season, holds the highest ranking of any junior player in Greece and the Athens native is the highest ranked player to sign with the Houston women's tennis program in the last 20 years. Vogasari recently claimed her first professional tournament victory at the The Mytilini Open in Greece and has been a finalist in five other professional singles and doubles events over the last two years.

Martin Fernandez signed with Houston before the start of the spring semester, where she was ranked No. 44 in Spain's open division and No. 1204 in WTA's worldwide rankings. Originally from Galicia, Spain, Martin Fernandez claimed the U16 regional championship before moving to Madrid in high school, where she went on to win the U18 regional doubles championship and advance to the semifinals of a U18 Spanish national singles and doubles event.
"We were very high on our incoming class even before these rankings, but it is certainly a nice accolade to receive and the credit should go to assistant coach Jo Keene and our director of compliance Kevin Klotz, who do all of the important behind the scenes work and receive very little public praise for it," Sullivan said. "I hate to give away our secret weapon, but I also need to mention our academic advisor Helen Gore-Laird, who is a real wolf in sheep's clothing as the most dynamic on-campus recruiter in the country. When prospects come in on visits and see not only all that Houston has to offer, but more importantly the incredible support and family environment that (Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics) Mack Rhoades has cultivated within our department, it really separates us from the pack.
"Unfortunately they don't give out rings for recruiting championships and we still have a lot of work ahead of us before we can start winning championships on the tennis court," Sullivan continued, "but we are excited to be on the right track, with the right people."

If Sullivan has a good reputation with Greece's Davis Cup coaches and given he's recruited Kordolaimi and now Vogasari. I have to wonder if Sakkari would be next

Given that Sakkari is a top prospect, parent's not dentists, mother highest ranked player in Greece history, I would think that it would be a smart move, tennis and financial, to come here (U of H).

Thanks for the article

Yeah, no one gets support from the Greek federation which is one of the reasons why girls like Gerasimou and Georgatou have quit/taken breaks. Sakkari's mother was the best Greek player before Daniilidou so maybe she has some connections to the federation? I'm not quite sure, but I doubt Sakkari will play college tennis. I think she wants to go pro. Also I think her family is fine financially. I could be wrong, but it doesn't seem like she is struggling financially . And I think she is a bit better than Vogasari.

I wouldn't be surprised if Angeliki Kairi ends up at the U of H though . She's another solid player, but she is younger and wouldn't be a cougar until 2014-15

""My goal is to try to win NCAA's my sophomore year," she said with confidence. "I don't really know where I'm going to go in and start playing [in the lineup], but I'd love to start playing No. 1 as a sophomore and then go from there." "